Adventures of John: Ravages of War
by John The Adventurer
Summary: Our world is in the middle of an ancient war between the forces of Order and Chaos. Realms both magical and mortal are being consumed by this war, and there are only a few of us who stand between these two great forces. I do not know if we can win, but I will do everything I can to save us. If I am not enough, then I fear we are lost.
1. Introduction

Adventures of John: Ravages of War

Introduction

My name is John the Adventurer. Not really. But in order to protect my identity, I usually refer to myself as such. Our world, our reality, is not the only one there is. There are an infinite number of planes of existence beyond our own, realms of myth and magic filled with all manner of beasts and creatures. There are those among us, ordinary people in all other aspects, that have a connection to one or more of these worlds. Their connection to these worlds can often give them abilities beyond those of other men, or even provide passage to these worlds. Many of these gifted individuals are unaware of their abilities.

I am one of these people, except I am aware of my gifts, and I am not merely connected to one realm, but to all of them. Because of this, I can see and speak with creatures from these realms, as well as separate my spirit from my body and use it to travel to these realms. When I am in these other worlds I can use the magic inherit in these worlds to do anything I can dream of. These are the tales of my journeys through the magical realms. These are the Adventures of John. Why am I posting my tales on a fan fiction site, you ask? Well, you wouldn't believe the people I've met.

. . . . .

In my early adventures, I was little more than a magical tourist. I traveled from realm to realm, sometimes doing some good, but mostly just making a mess of things. I had met some incredible people and been to some impossible places, but I was simply going with the flow, jumping into whatever adventure came my way. But after falling into an alternate universe and finding the true love of my life, Queen Elsa, and losing her when I was forced to leave, I found something within myself that I hadn't had since I was a little child. I found my defiance and my determination.

I spent the next few weeks(in our world. It was nearly a year when the magical realms' different time flows are taken into account.) searching for a way back to Arendelle. Though it had begun to seem almost impossible, I made my way through it, determined to find a way. Eventually I did return, and my strength was needed again as together we faced enemies determined to destroy her kingdom and those she loved. War raged and battles were fought. We were betrayed, only to find those that betrayed us would be our greatest allies. Among all the sorcerers and magicians, it turned out that those with no magical abilities at all would be our greatest assets.

After a near-disaster in which magic returned to our world and we were all nearly consumed by an eternal Darkness, things seemed to settle down. I believed that being reunited with my love would be the end. Our situation wasn't perfect, as I was forced to split my time between my universe and hers, but I was content. Elsa and I even got married, though the proposal was somewhat marred by an untimely interruption by Aphrodite. However, our happiness was not to last as I discovered the rise of a secret society. Determined to make sure nothing threatened my new life, I hunted down every clue I could find about this society. I soon discovered that this was more than anything I could have guessed. This secret society, calling themselves the Brotherhood of the Void, were a part of a plot as old as the universe itself, a plot to bring an end not just to our universe, but to every universe, to all of creation.

To be perfectly frank, this was beyond anything I had ever experienced before. I had been in many battles in the past and saved many lives. I had defeated monstrous beings of every variety and even had my own nemesis. However, I was no superhero. I was no savior or messiah. The last time the fate of the world was in my hands the Doctor ended up doing most of the work. The fate of the universe, or in this case, the multiverse, was not my problem. That was for men like the Doctor and Superman. However, this time it **was** my problem. The Doctor couldn't solve this one for me, nor could the Man of Steel. They helped me along the way, of course, but in order to protect those I loved I had to defeat the Void itself, the vast emptiness between the universes, a sentient force of pure nothingness. It took everything I had, but I was able to triumph.

Now Elsa and I have twins, a boy named Zane and a daughter named Alana. I would love to spend my days enjoying life in Arendelle with my family, but I can't do that. Our universe is in the middle of a war, a war between the forces of Order and Chaos. This war is consuming every aspect of our reality, from the magical realms to the mortal realm. Nearly everyone has already chosen a side in this war whether they are aware of it or not, and if that wasn't enough, the conflict between these two forces is tearing the very fabric of our universe apart, breaking down the barriers separating the mortal realm from the magical ones. This war is being felt in all four corners of the globe, and if either side wins it will result in the end of the world as we know it.

I stand against these forces, along with those few who have joined me. It will take all of my strength, determination, and most importantly, defiance, to defeat this. However, I cannot do it alone. Only together can we defeat both Order and Chaos, restoring Balance to this world. When this firs started I had a vision, one filled with disaster and pain. I beheld unspeakable horrors and watched the fall of civilizations. I saw, and then lived through, an alien invasion that nearly consumed our planet before time was rewritten and it never happened. Also among these images was that of a man in military garb, pointing a gun at my head. Many things in this vision have already come to pass, but many still have yet to be fulfilled.


	2. Chapter 1: The Soldier

Adventures of John: Ravages of War

Chapter 1: The Soldier

Author's Note: I'm sorry for having not written in so long, my friends. I have, unfortunately, been rather busy. I went on a backpacking trip that lasted the majority of a week, and I couldn't risk getting my laptop damaged by bringing it. I am actually on another trip right now, but luckily this one does not require me to keep my laptop behind. I should be able to get back to uploading new chapters regularly.

As many of you know, June 13, 2014 was both a Friday the Thirteenth and a full moon. To be honest, I've never taken stock in such superstition. When I find a black cat I pet it, when I step on a crack I barely notice, and most ladders are too short for me to walk under anyways. You'd think that someone like me, who deals with magic all the time, would be superstitious, but I'm not. I deal with real magic, not simple luck. I've never had problems on Friday the Thirteenth, and I really didn't expect to have any on this one. Apparently it was time for my luck to change for the worse.

I was driving through town that day, doing some errands for my parents. As I drove out of the parking lot of my mother's dental office, I saw a man staring at me. He was dressed in an army uniform, with messy hair and stubble covering his face. He had a wildness in his eyes that frightened me, but I drove away and he was gone. He had been a strange sight, but I live in Las Vegas. Even without including my experiences with magical creatures, I see stranger things than him every day. So I forgot about him and carried on with my day.

I spent the rest of the day doing various things such as watching television and reading. I made sure to close all tears in the barriers between the realms that I came across, dealing with any creatures that had made their way through. They were still invisible to ordinary humans, so I viewed the day as a success, one more day in which the world had not been destroyed. That night I went to sleep just as I usually did, looking forward to seeing Elsa and the twins. Unfortunately, I was not in Arendelle long before I was rudely awakened by a man lifting me from my bed, zip ties around my wrists, a gag covering my mouth, and a blindfold around my eyes. For the first time in my life, I was being kidnapped.

. . . . .

I was thrown into was felt like the trunk of a minivan and my kidnapper drove for an indeterminate amount of time. As he drove, I wondered how I had ended up in this mess. Did one of those dedicated to Order or Chaos discover my identity? Thinking about it, I realized I hadn't been quite as secretive about my life as I wrote these stories as I should have been. But if it was someone working for Order or Chaos, why was I still alive? Why didn't they just kill me? I soon found myself being carried from the car, and before long I was placed in a chair and the blindfold was taken off.

The man from before was standing in front of me, his military uniform stained with grease, mud, and what looked like mustard. His hair was disheveled, and it was obvious he hadn't slept, much less shaved, in days. The wild look was still in his eyes, and I could tell that I would have to tread carefully if I was to survive. So of course I mouthed off to him.

"What the heck do you think you are doing?!" I shouted, or at least I tried to. The gag made that a bit difficult, and instead all that came out was some garbled grunting sounds.

"No!" he exclaimed, running his hand through his hair and licking his lips. "I am asking the questions here. You will listen to me, and then, only then, will you speak to answer those questions." He shook his head frantically, as if trying to get rid of the voices in his mind. I could see the aspects of Order and Chaos flittering around him, his obviously damaged state of mind exciting them. Looking down, I saw that he held a pistol loosely in his left hand. So here I was, tied up and without my magic, while a deranged lunatic held me at gunpoint.

"You were there," he muttered. "When the aliens came, you were there. And the darkness, you were there too. I heard you talking about it at the base. You were different then, but it was **you**!" He pointed the gun at me, his hands shaking dangerously. "At Area 51, **you** were the one with the magic. The aliens attacked the base, and… I died. I was dead, and then suddenly I wasn't, and the aliens had never come at all. But they **did**!" He began sweating, strain showing on his face. "The first time it happened, with the, the Darkness, no one would believe me, so I stayed quiet. The magic was gone, so I thought it was over." He paused, chuckling. "But it wasn't."

_Sergeant Calhoun?_ I thought. Last time I had seen the man he had been clean shaven and took better care of himself, but it was definitely the same man. He had been one of the soldiers protecting Area 51 when I went there to make a plan with the sciency types to save the world, back when the Unlidary invaded. I had sent the aliens back into their own universe and turned back time so they had never arrived in the first place. Basically, I was the only one who remembered the whole ordeal. Or at least I thought I was. But how could he possibly remember?

"And then it happened again!" he exclaimed. "The aliens came, and I was able to use the knowledge I gained from the magical invasion to get myself to the center of the action. And then the aliens killed me. I was dead, and then it was Monday again, and the aliens never came." He tore off the gag, still pointing the gun at me. "**I DIED!** Explain that! Explain to me why everyone thinks I'm crazy! Explain to me why I was discharged from the army and spent several weeks in a mental institution! Explain that to me!"

I waited a moment before speaking, knowing that if I said anything to upset him I would most likely end up with a bullet in my brain. How did he remember the Unlidary invasion? How did he remember World War Magic and the coming of the Darkness? All of those things had been erased from history. I only remembered them because of special circumstances. What was so special about him that he was able to remember? My curiosity aside, I understood his pain. One of my greatest fears had always been being locked in an insane asylum because of the things that I know. To tell people what you know to be true, and be branded as a lunatic because of it. Of course, this guy was obviously nuts, but I think being institutionalized had been the cause, not the solution.

"I don't know," I told him honestly. "I don't know why you can remember all of that. I turned back time because that was the only way to save everyone. I thought that I would be the only one to remember. I never thought that someone else could possibly remember it as well. I can help you, if you let me. We could find out what makes you different from everyone else. We could prove them wrong."

"Really?" He lowered his gun and for a moment the madness seemed to clear from his eyes, but then the whispering from Order and Chaos grew louder, and the gleam of insanity returned, brighter than ever. "No," he whispered, pointing the gun at my head again. "This is all your fault. Now you need to pay."


	3. Chapter 2: The Magical Realms

Adventures of John: Ravages of War

Chapter 2: The Magical Realms

"No," he whispered, pointing the gun at my head again. "This is all your fault. Now you need to pay."

_Well that's just great,_ I thought to myself. _I go and get myself into the middle of a war between the two greatest forces in the universe, and what is it that kills me? Not a god, not a demon, not even a faerie. Nope. I get killed by an ex-soldier who has gone Looney Toons. That will be a fantastic way to end my career as a multiverse-traveling magical hero._

Just then I felt something at the edge of my senses, the slightest tingle of magical power. Looking out of the corner of my eye, I saw a small tear opening in the barriers between the realms. It was small, and usually I would close it with barely a thought. Now however, it could quite possibly be my only chance of survival. Instead of working against the two forces tearing apart our world, for just a moment I concentrated and worked with them, ripping that hole wide open.

I didn't stop there though. With the tear gaping wide it was now suddenly visible and Calhoun was too shocked to shoot me as he stared into the glowing rift in the world. I snapped my restraints with magically-assisted strength and twisted my wrists, sending the tear **towards** us, sending both of us into the magical realms before shutting the door behind us.

"Impossible," Calhoun muttered as he stared at our surroundings. Monstrous mushrooms grew around us, while the waist-high grass surrounding us appeared to be comprised of hair. The ground was an odd shade of greenish-brown and squished slightly as you stepped on it. "What did you do?!" he cried, turning the gun on me again.

"I'm afraid it is too late for that," I laughed, sending the pistol flying away with a wave of my hand. "You should have killed me while you had the chance," I told him, with a snap of my fingers launching a nearby rock at him which sent him crashing into one of the mushrooms. "You're in my world now, and I think it's about time we found out what is so special about that head of yours." I walked forward slowly, chains appearing from nowhere to restrain him.

I know I didn't need to do that to discover what it was that allowed him to remember, but I have to admit I enjoyed it. He had just kidnapped me and almost shot me, so I think I was justified in scaring him a bit. It's not like I killed him or anything. Anyways, I was reaching down to put my fingers on his forehead so I could search his mind when the ground suddenly lurched and I was tossed aside. Gravity seemed to have changed direction and I found myself clinging to a mushroom, desperately trying not to fall into whatever bottomless abyss awaited me.

Once I collected my thoughts I was able to use my magic to float away from the mushroom, only to find that Calhoun was somehow out of the chains I had placed him in, sitting on a nearby mushroom. He had somehow found that gun again and was pointing it at me. "This ends now!" he exclaimed.

Of course, I could easily have survived something as simple as a bullet with the aid of my magic. However, I was getting really sick of this guy. So before he could pull the trigger I blasted him with electricity and the gun fell into the vastness below. I watched in shock as he shrugged off the blast, which should have knocked him out cold. I conjured a giant punching glove and shot it at him, only for it to shatter, barely making him slip.

_How is this possible?_ I asked myself. I tried to throw him off the mushroom with some telekinetic magic, only for him to look as if he were fighting off a troublesome wind. My magical attacks seemed to barely be affecting him. The ground lurched again and gravity switched direction, and suddenly the bottomless abyss was the sky and vise versa. I flew above the chaos while he managed to grab hold of another mushroom, saving himself.

I thought about what had just happened. Calhoun had somehow shrugged off my magical attacks like they were nothing, yet when I had launched that rock at him it had affected him just as well as it should have. Beyond this, he had somehow remembered both the Unlidary invasion and World War Magic. Then, in a moment of inspiration that made me realize just how obvious the answer was, I knew. Somehow, some way, Sergeant Calhoun was resistant to magic. Just as this realization hit me, I sensed danger and turned to see Calhoun pull the trigger of the gun.

Time seemed to slow as the bullet made its way towards me. A thousand different possible outcomes went through my head. A thousand different futures, and I saw one of them that solved all of these problems. All of the ones related to Calhoun, anyway. There were other solutions that would have been infinitely nobler and more heroic. Unfortunately, those didn't have a certain chance of success. There was too much danger, too much chance of something going wrong. So, I chose the easy way. I saw the bullet coming for me and I turned it around, directing it exactly where I wanted it to go.

Calhoun's grip loosened and he fell, a hole in his forehead. He dropped, and soon enough he vanished from sight. He was one of the most unique people in the universe. One of the only ones able to remember the events that had never happened, and not because of any magical trickery. No, he remembered because when time was magically altered he was barely effected. A man who, given the right circumstances, could have stood up to gods and demons with nothing more than a gun in his hand. And I killed him because I was afraid. I was afraid he was too dangerous, afraid that his insanity was too uncontrollable, afraid of the unknown.

I try my best to be a hero. I try to follow the example of the multiverse's greatest heroes. I try, whenever possible, to follow the example set by Jesus Christ. But on that Friday the Thirteenth, I proved that heroes are just as flawed as everyone else. I proved that I am no savior. I am just a man trying to save a universe determined to rip itself apart. I am a man who, out of fear, killed a soldier who, given the chance, could have been one of the universe's greatest heroes. He could have also been the world's most dangerous psychopath, but now we will never know.

Of course, at the time I didn't realize the full extent of what I had done. I had shocked myself, and before I could think about what had happened I was grabbed and lifted up by something so massive I could barely comprehend it. I was soon face-to-face with the largest creature I had ever seen. Its nose alone filled the majority of my vision. I realized then that I had not been standing on ground, and that had not been grass. Those mushrooms likely were actually mushrooms, because I had been standing on this creature's foot and the shifting gravity had been this monstrous being's footsteps.

**_"_****_WHO ARE YOU?"_**


	4. Chapter 3: The First

Adventures of John: Ravages of War

Chapter 3: The First

**_"_****_WHO ARE YOU?" _**The voice resounded from all around me, so loud it seemed to shake the air. The only other time I had heard a voice was like that was when I spoke with the three celestial beings back at the dawn of the universe, and at that time they were little more than newly formed spirits, so even their voices at the time could hardly compare. As far as I could tell, the creature was gripping me between its thumb and forefinger, a grip that must have been not even the slightest amount of effort for it, but if not for my magically-enhanced strength I would have been crushed.

"I am John the Adventurer," I replied, trying to sound relatively normal as I struggled for breath. "And I'm afraid I must inform you that you have a serious case of foot fungus. You should probably get a doctor to check that out."

The creature stood in silence, obviously confused at my statement. It seemed to be examining me carefully, as if it had discovered a particularly interesting insect. Considering our size difference, I wouldn't be surprised if that was how it thought of me. **_"STRANGE,"_** it muttered, or at least I think it did. This statement was slightly less thunderous than the previous question, so I guess that it was the closest the creature could come to a mutter. **_"ARE YOU NOT AFRAID OF ME? HOW DO YOU SPEAK TO ME SO CALMLY?"_**

I laughed at that, realizing the source of his confusion. Most people, when faced with a creature so large that you confused their foot with a landmass, would attempt to run in terror. Yet here I was, recommending the creature find a doctor to treat his foot fungus. Personally, I blame pop culture. Our heroes these days have far too much sass for their own good, and I guess I picked it up from them. It really doesn't help when you meet them for yourself. I'm fairly certain that their sass is contagious.

"I guess I'm just a bit thick," I told the creature. "I'm just not that smart. I make all sorts of stupid decisions, like picking fights with Thor and opening rifts in the universe. I'm sure you are a truly frightening creature with terrible powers, but at this point I don't really care. Either you're going to kill me or the universe is going to find some contrived way to keep me alive like it usually does. Either way, it's out of my hands."

What felt like an earthquake shook the creature, and after a moment I realized it was chuckling. **_"I LIKE YOU, LITTLE ONE,"_** the creature told me. **_"IT HAS BEEN A LONG TIME SINCE I HAVE LAUGHED. TELL ME, WHY ARE YOU HERE?"_**

"A crazy ex-soldier was trying to kill me," I replied. "I wanted to go somewhere I could do something about it, and we kind of tumbled into this realm and onto one of your feet. He fell off, and I think you might have stepped on him somewhere along the way."

**_"_****_AND WHY DID THIS SOLDIER WISH YOU DEAD?"_**

"There is a war going on," I told him, "between the forces of Order and Chaos. His insanity made him an easy target. They were using him like a puppet on a string."

**_"_****_I KNOW OF THIS WAR,"_** the creature stated.**_ "EVEN IN MY YOUTH IT RAGED ACROSS THE REALMS IN A POINTLESS STRUGGLE. TELL ME, WHAT SIDE OF THIS WAR ARE YOU ON? ARE YOU HERE TO TRY TO CONVINCE ME TO JOIN YOUR SIDE IN THIS WAR?"_** Its voice had grown dangerous, anger making the rumbling grow into a thunder.

"Neither," I replied. "If Order were to win, the world would be subject to absolute tyranny. If Chaos were to win, the world would be plunged into an era of random violence and destruction. The only way for our world to survive is for neither force to win, for the equilibrium to be maintained. If I am on a side, it is not the side of Order or Chaos, but of Balance."

**_"_****_WISE WORDS, FOR A MORTAL," _**the creature told me. **_"THOUGH I CAN SEE WHAT YOU MEAN ABOUT BEING THICK. FACING TWO UNSTOPPABLE FORCES IS NOT THE MOST INTELLIGENT OF DECISIONS."_** The creature laughed, shaking the air around me.**_ "I WISH YOU THE BEST OF LUCK. PLEASE RETURN TO YOUR REALM. I WILL WATCH YOUR PROGRESS."_**

"If you don't mind my asking," I began, "who are you? What are you? I've never encountered anything quite like you before."

**_"_****_I AM THE FIRST," _**it replied. **_"THE FIRST MONSTER. TROLLS, GOBLINS, OGRES, GIANTS, IMPS, I AM THE ORIGIN OF ALL OF THEM. I AM THE FIRST."_**

"You seem a little too nice to be a monster," I told it. "You're not exactly the prettiest creature I've seen, but you'd be the first monster to not attempt to kill me."

**_"_****_I AM OLD," _**the First responded. **_"I AM TIRED. ONCE I WOULD HAVE GLADLY BATHED IN THE BLOOD OF A MILLON MEN. BUT IN MY AGE I HAVE LEARNED HOW POINTLESS CONFLICT IS. DEATH AND PAIN HOLD NO MORE JOY FOR ME. NOW I WATCH AS MY CHILDREN DO WHAT THEY WERE CREATED TO DO, THE CREATURES OF LIGHT DO WHAT THEY WERE CREATED TO DO, AND THE MORTALS DO EVERYTHING EXCEPT WHAT THEY WERE CREATED TO DO."_**

"I-I guess I'm glad that you've mellowed with age," I stuttered.

**_"_****_IT IS TIME FOR YOU TO LEAVE,"_** the First told me.**_ "GO NOW. I WILL WATCH YOUR PROGRESS WITH INTEREST."_**

He lowered me to the ground far below, and I created a portal back home to earth. I'm not sure if I had made an ally that day, but I do think I made a friend. In a world where allies become enemies quicker than Superman changes clothes, I believe that friends are far more valuable.


	5. Chapter 4: The Camp

Adventures of John: Ravages of War

Chapter 4: The Camp

I reappeared in my bedroom and promptly returned to sleep. I don't know where Calhoun took me before, but I guess someone ended up finding an abandoned van next to an old warehouse somewhere in the city. Maybe the keys were still in the ignition and they got a free car. I don't know and I really don't care.

Back in Arendelle I told everyone about my most recent adventure and Elsa fussed over me for a bit while I assured her I was fine. After that there were a bunch of boring official things I had to attend, doing little more than sitting there in regal clothing and agreeing with Elsa's statements. I've never liked bureaucracy and legislation and all that boring stuff. I did have some alone time with Elsa after that, but it wasn't long before I had to return to our world.

The following days were worrying ones. I continued to discover new troubles facing our world, new symptoms of the war between Order and Chaos. I learned that a jihadist group in the Middle East is taking over parts of Iraq and Syria, enforcing a strict Muslim order in the areas they took over. Interestingly enough, the initials of this "Islamic State of Israel and Syria" spell out the name of the Egyptian goddess Isis. And while this one stood out the most, it was only one of many issues that I discovered in our world that I could directly connect to the war.

_The war keeps on growing,_ I thought to myself as I surfed the internet. _More and more people keep on dying, and I am no closer to stopping it._ I had succeeded in keeping the tears in the barriers between the realms from going out of control, but that was just a delaying tactic. Even if I kept the realms from merging, the war would still continue, and those working for the causes of Order and Chaos would find another way to fight their war. I needed to find a way to stop this, and I was running out of time.

Unfortunately, my efforts would have to be put on hold, as I was sent on a four day scouting trip. I am already an Eagle Scout, but unfortunately I still have to go on scouting trips, and I can't exactly tell everyone that I can't go because I'm too busy trying to save the world from total annihilation. This particular expedition was a backpacking trip down into Havasupi, a camp down at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. The ten mile hike into camp wasn't all that bad, as it was mostly downhill. The hike back up, however, was torment. I would like to point out that I reached camp before everyone else, as well as exiting the canyon before everyone else as well.

The time at camp was spent mostly lying about. We ate freeze-dried food and drank purified river water, hiding from the sun during the day and hoping the insects didn't come for us in the night. There were some things to do, such as searching through the caves near our campsite and laying in the shallow river. One day we hiked a few miles over to some falls, the cold water of which felt wonderful after the hike in the blistering sun.

For the most part of the time in the camp, everything seemed to be on pause. I could feel an old power in the canyon walls, a power which somehow kept the rage of the war from entering the camp. The barriers between the realms were still tearing apart and I had to repair them, and the representations of Order and Chaos were still whispering in everyone's ears, but their actions seemed to be sluggish, and the tears seemed to rip open less often. It felt good to be away from the war for a while, but each day that passed, I knew that this respite was only temporary. Once I left the canyon, I would return to the war ravaging our world.

Then the four days were up, and I was hiking out. On my way out of the canyon, I felt the presence of the spirit guarding it. It was ancient, and as I sensed this spirit, I realized how it could keep the war at bay. This spirit, which must have been inactive for centuries, had been awoken by the growing war, and was now doing its best to protect the place it called home.

It didn't tell me any of this. I don't know whether the spirit was so old that it predated spoken language, or if it simply didn't understand the concept of spoken language, but it spoke to me through images and emotions, a form of communication I hadn't encountered before. Unfortunately, I could already feel the spirit's power waning, and knew that this place would not be protected for much longer. I felt a kinship with this spirit in its attempts to maintain Balance, and I saluted it as I hiked out of the canyon.

As I collapsed on the end of the trail, high above the canyon, I felt the spirit's protection fade to nothing. I was back in the world, and I had a job to do. Except, of course, that once I returned home from camp I was sent off on another trip.


	6. Chapter 5: Nature out of Balance

Adventures of John: Ravages of War

Chapter 5: Nature out of Balance

Part of me expected this trip to be just as boring and uneventful as the last, but the greater part of me could feel the difference. The war was escalating, and I was no longer under the protection of the spirit of the Grand Canyon. This trip was a bus trip across the country, and was to last a total of two weeks. My first day on the trip was relatively uneventful as we toured various historical locations at our first stop. Nothing was happening yet, but I could sense the forces building. The little whisperers were especially active, and the tears seemed to be opening faster than ever before. Despite this, the day passed without incident.

That did not last through the night. I was sleeping peacefully in a hotel bed when I heard a crash and woke up to find a massive beast leaping at me. I tried to blast it back with magic, but all I succeeded in doing was slowing it down enough for me to grab the creature's jaws and keep it from biting my head off. I shook my head frantically, attempting to clear it enough to understand what was going on.

The beast had the head of a crocodile, followed by the mane and front half of a lion's body, while its rear was that of a hippopotamus. "Ammit?" I asked, remembering the creature from Egyptian mythology. "What the heck are you doing here?" This thing was supposed to be in the Egyptian underworld, eating the hearts of the unworthy. She was **not** supposed to be in my hotel room trying to eat my face. Looking around, I saw that there was a tear in the barriers between the realms directly behind the creature, which must have been its entry point. Of course, as the creature was only half present, my roommates couldn't hear the ruckus it was making and were still asleep. I managed to get my feet planted on her stomach, still making sure to keep her snapping jaws away from my head, and with magically-reinforced strength I kicked her back through the tear before quickly closing it. I did not want her coming back through.

. . . . .

After that incident I made sure to be extra diligent in closing any tears that we drove by. I didn't want to end up tussling with a Cyclops in the middle of the bus, or having a frost giant squash me in my sleep. I would, however, discover that they were not the only dangers I faced on this trip. The war was throwing both the magical realms and humanity out of balance, that much I knew. What I didn't realize was that it was throwing nature itself out of balance as well. And as I was the only one confronting both of these forces, I ended up being the epicenter of the insanity.

Several days into the trip, we were sitting on the bus when the iPhone of everyone with an iPhone rang. Looking down, I saw the same message that everyone else did. It was a tornado warning. The bus was instantly filled with murmurs as everyone wondered and speculated.

"A tornado?" they asked. "How far? Has it touched down yet?"

Everyone went to their phones in search of answers. No, there was no tornado yet, but a storm was picking up and it looked like one would form. While everyone else frantically searched the internet for answers, I thought. I could feel the unrest all around us. The Balance of nature had been disrupted, and we were all in danger. I closed my eyes and tried to sense what was happening, but there was too much unbalance, it was disrupting my senses. Luckily for us the tornado barely managed to form, and we were long past when it did. Everyone was relieved, but I knew it was only the beginning.

A few days later we were driving in heavier traffic and the bus was engulfed in a swarm of the largest bees I had ever seen. Dozens of them swarmed around the bus, slamming against windows and bringing themselves to a frenzy. There was no reason for them to be acting this way, but they were, and if something wasn't done those bees would find a way in. Some of those in the bus were freaking out at the swarming insects, while others hardly seemed to notice. However, none of them really believed the bees would find their way into the vehicle.

I knew differently. Nature was in chaos, and I had to do something to return Balance. I had discovered the first time I closed a tear in the barriers between the realms that I possessed some sort of connection to Balance, but I still didn't understand exactly what that meant. Focusing, I tried to reach out with that connection and soothe the raging insects outside. It took a moment, but before long the bees began to disperse, and our bus was no longer the epicenter of a bee swarm. I breathed deeply, the endeavor having taken a lot out of me. Somehow I had calmed the bees, not by controlling them with magic, but by reaching out to and repairing the Balance inherit in nature.

. . . . .

A few days later we were on a short hike, and with my long legs I was far ahead of the rest of the group. I stepped into a patch of grass, and suddenly a massive swarm of mayflies burst from the ground and whirled around me. After a moment of shocked running and swatting, I calmed myself enough to reach out again, and while the mayflies did not disperse like the bees had, they left me alone, splitting into smaller, less violent swarms that flew about. While I had managed to handle the situation, this different reaction worried me. The imbalance was growing stronger, and there was still so little that I understood.

. . . . .

It came to a head a few days before the trip would end. We had arrived at our hotel and I could feel energies gathering. Something big was coming, and it was coming soon. Storm clouds gathered, and soon the air was filled with wind and rain. Lightning struck and thunder immediately followed, starling one of my roommates. Before long lightning was striking ever other second, sometimes close enough for us to see it hit the ground. One of my roommates turned on the television to the weather, watching to make sure we were not in danger of a tornado. As it turned out, we were.

Sitting on a bed made from two comfy chairs put together, I focused on the imbalance in the world and tried to repair it. Unlike with the insects, I felt like I was pressing against a mountain and trying to move it. For the better part of the night I sat there, battling the storm. Wind and rain and lightning raged outside, and I held firm against them, trying to reestablish balance and directing the worst of it away. After several hours of this I finally fell asleep, exhausted.

The next day I learned that a tornado had indeed touched down, but it was only an F-1 tornado, and it had touched down far from our location. I had managed to fight off a tornado, even without my wealth of magical abilities to aid me. All this time, facing against the forces of Order and Chaos, there had been a very large part of me that insisted it was impossible, that I had no way to combat them. Now I knew differently. I still didn't quite understand the power of Balance or my connection to it, but I now know that I have a way to take on these two seemingly unstoppable forces.

As I write these final words down we have just started the final day of the trip. Tomorrow I will be home, and I will have a new weapon to use against Order and Chaos, once I learn how to better utilize it. This war is far from over, my friends. Tomorrow is a new day, one that the enemies of Balance will not find to their liking.


	7. Chapter 6: Musings and Memories

Adventures of John: Ravages of War

Chapter 6: Musings and Memories

So now we have caught up with the present. It is interesting how a span of several weeks can be summed up in two meager chapters. That last day of the trip we learned about a hurricane that had recently came through North Carolina. It wasn't the worst of hurricanes, but the appearance of Hurricane Arthur still dulled the sleep-deprived thrill of my victory over the tornado. It is highly likely that the hurricane was simply a part of the natural weather of our planet, but its appearance at the same time as the storm that had nearly killed off my tour group worried me. How far out of balance is nature becoming?

Besides worrying about the weather, my time away has given me time to think about the death of Sergeant Calhoun. I have to wonder how people like Superman manage to do it, keeping from killing any of their villains. Most of my enemies are either impossible or nearly impossible to kill, and those that can be killed usually don't have souls, but most of those few human enemies I have faced have ended up dead. If it weren't for Elsa I would have killed Hans. Of course, that was when my soul was split in half, and it was my dark half that was about to do it, but it is still true that too many people have died at my hands.

Elsa is most certainly my better half. Hans had attempted to kill both her and Anna, yet despite this both of them had been able to show mercy and would not give him the death sentence. I wish Elsa had been there to keep me from killing Calhoun. I wonder if he had a family. A wife maybe, with children. Parents, siblings, nieces and nephews. I wonder what they might think happened to him. The man was homicidally psychotic, but he was still human. He had a soul, just like the men on the ship that I destroyed during the Siege of Arendelle with a single wrathful thought.

Why is it so easy for other heroes to make the right decision? Or if it's not easy, how do they have the strength to do it? I could make excuses for myself of course. He was a dangerous lunatic, after all. If I hadn't killed him, he could have killed innocents. But Batman and Superman face that decision all the time with their villains, and they always choose not to kill them. No one is more psychotic than the Joker, yet Batman never kills him. I don't believe in killing, I never have. I think that killing a human being is a horrible, heinous thing to do. Then why do I keep doing it?

But you don't want to hear my guilt-fueled ramblings, do you? No, you want to read about grand adventures, about John the Adventurer coming down from the sky in a blaze of glory, landing with an explosion of flame and light into a battlefield full of demonic enemies ready to be slaughtered. Or perhaps you want to read about the romance between Elsa and I, about some beautifully tragic event in our lives, or some hopelessly romantic moments we've had together recently. Well, I have not had any glorious battles recently, and luckily it has been a while since Elsa and I have faced anything tragic, a trend which I hope will continue, as I am fed up with tragic. Also, Elsa and I haven't had the time to do anything too romantic recently, and I don't think I'm in any state to be romantic.

Before Calhoun kidnapped me though, romance was at the top of my list of priorities. After all, I somehow managed to get married to the most amazing woman in the multiverse. I don't ever want to lose that. To end this on a less unhappy note, I'll tell you about my most recent attempt at keeping the romantic flame between me and Elsa burning, a difficult endeavor when your wife is the Queen of Ice and Snow. Who knows, maybe telling the story will cheer me up enough to bring me back to my usual flamboyantly charming personality.

. . . . .

It was only a few days before the incident. I am always looking for new ways to surprise Elsa, and I found the perfect chance as Elsa was throwing one of the balls the nobility love so much. While we've both attended plenty of these balls, neither of us have ever danced at them, as we are both usually horrid dancers. Anna tried to teach Elsa and I to dance, but we always ended up tripping over each other's feet and falling on our faces. It was lots of laughs, but after a while we decided to forget about trying to learn to dance. We could never perform the elegant dances used at these balls, not without the aid of magic.

I got the idea when I heard a song on the radio, several parts of which reminded me of mine and Elsa's earliest days. The song was used in a horrible movie, which was an adaptation of a book series that is a shame to the fantasy genre and started the worst trend in novel history, but that doesn't make the song any less amazing. So, I prepared, and when the time came for the ball I was ready.

"What are you doing all alone up here?" I asked Elsa as I found her looking over a fat stack of official-looking documents up in her study. "Isn't there a party happening downstairs?"

"Anna is at the ball," Elsa replied, signing one of the sheets of paper and throwing several of them in the trash bin with a growl of disgust. "Some of these proposals are complete idiocy!" she exclaimed. Sighing, she rubbed her forehead and smiled at me tiredly. "I'm afraid there is too much to do. Besides, you know better than anybody what a terrible dancer I am."

"Not tonight Princess," I responded with a smirk. "Tonight we ignore the work. Tonight we dance like nobody has ever danced before."

. . . . .

The nobility weren't surprised at Elsa's absence. There were some mutterings, but for the most part they accepted it. Ruling a kingdom while also being a full-time mother is not an easy job, and the people of Arendelle have always loved their queen. Of course, no one expected me to come. To the nobility I was the subject of gossip, their mysterious warrior king who seemed to only stay around long enough to save the day when disaster struck. So everyone was shocked when Elsa and I strode through the doors into the ballroom, Elsa adorned in a shimmering dress of ice crystals that accentuated her form while still leaving plenty to the imagination, and I in a crimson suit that caught the light in a way that sometimes made it seem as if it was on fire.

The musicians stopped playing and the ballroom floor quickly emptied, as everyone could sense something spectacular was about to happen. I waved my hand and the piano began to play. With another wave of my hand I conjured a violin into the air, which also began to play. Soon a small orchestra was playing, and the song truly began, a spectral voice singing as Elsa and I began to dance.

"Heart beats fast,

Colors and promises,

How to be brave?

How can I love when I'm afraid to fall?

But watching you stand alone,

All of my doubt suddenly goes away somehow.

One step closer."

My mind went back to my days in recovery, how we simply sat and talked together. How despite my nonchalant attitude, every day I could feel myself falling in love with her. And then that last day, how I feared telling her the truth about how I felt.

"I have died every day waiting for you.

Darling, don't be afraid I have loved you

For a thousand years.

I'll love you for a thousand more.

And all along I believed I would find you

Time has brought your heart to me

I have loved you for a thousand years

I'll love you for a thousand more."

Then I remembered the pain. Those days that we were forced to be apart. All that time searching for a way back, and the hope I had for our reunion.

The song continued, and we danced. The rest of the room was in hushed silence, and for the moment at least, it seemed that the two of us were the only people in the world. There were no missteps, there was no stumbling. The two of us were in perfect synchronization, our feet moving fluidly across the floor. The moment was perfect.

"The day we met,

Frozen I held my breath

Right from the start

I knew that I'd found a home for my heart...

...beats fast

Colors and promises

How to be brave?

How can I love when I'm afraid to fall

But watching you stand alone?

All of my doubt suddenly goes away somehow."

Memories filled my mind as the song went on, from our first meeting and battle against the Trickster, to our first talk in her study, the first time I called her Princess and made her smile. I saw the look in her eyes when I finally came back, and I felt our first kiss, all that time ago. A gasp sounded in the circle of people surrounding us, and I looked down to see that our feet were no longer touching the floor. Elsa and I were several feet off the ground, dancing in the air. The song ended, Elsa and I floated back down to the ground, and we kissed.

"That was beautiful," Elsa told me quietly.

"I thought you'd like it," I replied with a smile. "I didn't make up that song though. I kind of stole it from the internet. They could sue me you know."

The voice was gone, and my conjured instruments soon followed. Elsa and I stepped away, and together we watched the rest of the ball, enjoying each other's presence.


	8. Chapter 7: Returning to Battle

Adventures of John: Ravages of War

Chapter 7: Returning to Battle

A fortress was being constructed on the border separating two realms, two realms which had been at war for millennia. One was a realm of life, of plants and animals, of warmth and light. The other was a realm of death, of rock and stone, of cold and darkness. Yet both sides in this conflict believed in Order, so now for the first time, the Florans of the Everwood and the Rock-Men of the Stone Wastes worked side by side, their hatred held at bay by their obedience to Order. On one side the fortress was made of dark stone, while on the other it was formed of hardened wood, and even in this early state in its construction the fortress was a wonder to behold.

Yet at the same time, there was a dangerous edge to it. The wooden walls were covered with thorns, while stalagmites jutted out of the base of the stone walls. It was beautiful, but also deadly. There was but one reason for such a place: War.

A Floran working on the walls was hard at work doing its job. As plant people, the Florans could not be considered either male or female, as they were, in fact, both. A nearby Rock-Man was doing its job as well, and while they are called men, the Rock-Men in truth do not possess a gender, as they form from the earth itself. While the pair exchanged hateful glances, there was no conflict. Order had to be maintained at all costs.

Glancing up, the Floran saw a bright light in the sky. It shouted at the Rock-Man to look, fear evident in its tone, but the Rock-Man ignored the plant creature. The bright light in the sky was obviously the sun, which the Rock-Men despised, just as they despised all light. The earthen creature couldn't understand how the Florans could possibly enjoy having a blazing sphere in the sky. Then the Rock-Man saw out of the corner of his eye that the light was coming from the sky above the Stone Wastes. But that was impossible, there was no light in the sky in the Stone Wastes, only darkness! The creature turned to raise the alarm, but it was too late.

The light crashed down violently, creating a massive crater in the center of the unfinished fortress. A figure stepped out of the crater, a blood-red cloak billowing about his golden armor. He reached out his hand and a blazing sword appeared, flames licking the air hungrily. "I'm back! I announced to the shocked beings surrounding me. "So, who's first?"

. . . . .

After several more days of contemplating the morality my actions I decided that enough was enough. Whether what I had done was right or not, it was done, and there was nothing I could do to change that. Elsa agreed with me on that point.

"You did what you had to," she told me, "just as you did during the Siege. You can't keep dwelling on it. You have to move on. Go do something. Don't you have a war to fight?"

She was right of course. I couldn't keep dwelling on this, and I did have a war to fight. If I kept ignoring my responsibilities it wouldn't be long until they all erupted in my face. I decided I had to get back to work. So, the next day I crossed over into the magical realms, itching for a fight. I was ready for anything, though I do not think I was in the most stable state of mind. I wanted to fight something, anything to get my mind off of the man I had killed. I would gladly have faced off against a god if it could distract me from my thoughts. Like I said, I wasn't exactly in the most stable state of mind.

I fought against both the creatures of Order and Chaos, glorifying in the heat of battle. While I fought, I thought only of the battle, and guilt was barely a memory. It is a truly liberating experience to battle beings that do not possess souls. Unlike humans, the majority of magical creatures do not have free will, because they do not have souls. They simply do as their nature directs. During this war they have shown an independence that they have never shown before, yet they still seem to follow their nature, only more dangerously so, as if they have gained some sick mockery of free will. This of course only makes killing them all the more gratifying. Which, now that I've said it, sounds incredibly creepy.

. . . . .

The second camp was far less wondrous. There was no fortress, no organized building projects. Instead there was a ragged assembly of tents, huts, and half-built structures stretching for miles. The strict Order maintained in the fortress was also not present. Brawls erupted all over the place, with hardly a reason for the violence. The dead and dying were ignored, dozens of species fighting and killing each other, and yet still the camp was overcrowded with life.

One troll straggled a goblin over a piece of string. On the other side of camp, a trio of dwarves ambushed an elf, robbing him of all his possessions. A necromancer tried to make use of several of the corpses, only for an overzealous ghoul to confuse the thin, pale necromancer for a corpse, ripping into the man's neck before he could protect himself. All over the camp, Chaos reigned supreme.

The dwarves, the troll, the ghoul, and everyone else in the camp looked up as a light suddenly blazed in the sky. Fear filled their eyes as they recognized the figure hovering above them, his trademark golden armor and crimson cloak marking him unmistakably. He thrust his fists outward, a wall of flame engulfing the camp.

. . . . .

Of course, minions are not the only ones I had to face. If you eliminate enough of the pawns, the other pieces are doubtlessly going to come into play. And while it may not be enough to draw the king out, you are bound to face a couple of rooks and a knight or two.

. . . . .

"This is quite the devastation you have wrought," stated a voice from above me as I stood in a field of ash and charred corpses. Turning around, I saw a familiar face, a man floating down from the sky with wings on his feet and a toga wrapped around him.

"Hermes?" I asked in shock. He certainly looked like the Olympian, but the Hermes I knew preferred to dress like a mailman or jogger or racquetball player. He didn't dress in togas, and his presence here made me nervous. I didn't want to have to fight a friend.

"Actually no," he replied. "I'm Mercury. I believe you already experienced the duality of the Olympians when you fought alongside my brother Mars."

"I did," I responded, taking a little sigh of relief. "And I knew about that duality long before that battle. So why are you here then Roman? Are you acting as a messenger for big daddy Jupiter?"

"So much destruction," he muttered, ignoring the question. "You claim to be fighting for Balance, for the preservation of life and liberty. All very noble to be sure. Yet, at the same time, you go on these violent killing sprees. How do you justify it?"

"They didn't have souls," I replied coldly. "Like animals, you magical beings are ruled only by your nature. To kill someone who does not possess a soul is nothing. To kill someone who has a soul is murder. This is just the ravages of war." I chuckled at the inside joke.

"So you think yourself better than us," Mercury surmised. "And yet you make friendships with us. Your Pixie friend, the Wicked Witch, even my Greek duplicate. Quite a double standard you have there child."

"You know nothing," I told him, shooting a blast of force in his direction.

"Oh, but I know a lot," he replied, moving at impossible speed to dodge the attack. "We have been keeping watch over you, after all. And I possess all of Hermes's memories, including the ones of you. Such secrets."

"I don't need to justify myself to someone who sold his humanity for power!" I exclaimed, attacking him again. I struck again and again, each time my strikes were dodged or swept aside with blinding speed. "Don't think I don't know how you so called 'gods' work. You have a little bit of power, so you build cults around yourselves. You feed off of those who worship you to give yourself strength, and along the way you give up your humanity and dare to call yourselves gods. Yet for all your power, you were still controlled by your worshippers. Your abilities, your personalities, even your memories were dictated by those who once worshipped you."

"By that logic, your dear friend Hermes would also fit into that category."

"I know," I replied coldly. "In fact, he was the one who gave up his humanity. You are simply a copy, a slight alteration made when the Romans adopted the Greek religion. I know full well Hermes's past. I may count him as a friend, and I do enjoy his company, but I never forget how he became what he is, or what he is capable of. If necessary, I will take him down as well."

"This is all rather pointless," Mercury sighed. "I can kill you before you could-" the rest of his sentence went in slow motion, his lightning-fast movements slowing to the pace of molasses. I, on the other hand, moved freely and without hesitation as I cut him into pieces.

"Time manipulation," I stated. "By slowing down the time around me, I was able to make even your movements sluggish. The skill was highly effective against the Flash, and not even you are as fast as he is. He is the fastest man alive, after all." I laughed at that, looking down at the pile of body parts oozing golden ichor. "You will eventually be able to reform yourself of course," I told him, "but don't forget how easy it was for me to defeat you. The time of gods is over. Your power is fading, thanks to Christianity eliminating your religion."

I began to walk away, then turned back to say one last thing. "One of these days," I informed him, "I will find a way to kill true immortals. On that day, you better hope that Olympus is strong enough to keep me out."


	9. Chapter 8: Searching for Answers

Adventures of John: Ravages of War

Chapter 8: Searching for Answers

For the next while I spent my time continuing my struggle against the forces of Order and Chaos. I attacked their encampments, battled their leaders, continually brought nature back into balance, and continued to seal the tears in the barriers between the realms. I soon realized, however, that it wasn't enough. I could do whatever I wanted in the magical realms, but this war is affecting every aspect of our universe. It is tearing apart the mortal realm just as much as it is the magical ones, and I can't exactly appear in the middle of Syria and fight off the forces of Order and Chaos over there, now can I?

No, fighting wouldn't be enough. I knew that now. I was only delaying the inevitable by doing so. Of course, that left me with an all-consuming question. What could I do? I was somehow connected to Balance, but in a way I still did not understand. Could I somehow use this power to defeat both Order and Chaos? I simply didn't know enough. I didn't know enough about Order, about Chaos, about Balance, about how it all worked. I needed knowledge, so I went to the greatest store of information in our universe: the Grand Libraries of the Loremasters.

I had been to the Loremasters several times before when I was in need of knowledge, including when I was searching for a way to return to Arendelle. They were not able to help me then, but that was because Arendelle is not in our universe, but in another one entirely. The Loremasters have been recording information since the dawn of the universe, or so it is said. I didn't see any of them around when I went back in time and witnessed our universe's creation, but their eldest member, whom I believe to also be the founder, is a tree that once stood in the Garden of Eden, making him the oldest living being in our universe other than God, the angels, and the Celestial Beings such as the Master Mage and the Great Dragon. If anyone would have information to help me discern the true nature of this war and how to deal with it, it would be the Loremasters.

So I made my way to the Libraries, endless halls filled with shelves that towered many stories high, so high that their topmost shelves vanished into the shadows of the ever-distant ceilings. The shelves were filled with tome after tome, but there were far more things on those shelves than just books. Artifacts millennia old looked as new as the day they were made, perfectly preserved in this sanctuary of knowledge. And most precious of all were the crystal vials, filled with mist of shifting colors and hues, a whisper or a sigh sometimes escaping. These were pure memories, memories of important events throughout the histories of realms both mortal and magical.

And throughout it all were the Loremasters, standing silently in their Jedi-like brown robes. Dedicated to only the gathering and safekeeping of knowledge, they do not concern themselves with the worries and wars of any world, other than to record it. Few know the way into the Grand Libraries, and even fewer visit. The Loremasters do not take kindly to their knowledge being used for one's own benefit, and do not allow anything to be taken. Even I am only permitted to view the tomes, and even then there are many that I am banned from. The former contents of the Library of Alexandria are included in this number.

And so, with aid from the Loremasters, I began searching. And I kept searching. Even without the fluid nature of time in the magical realms, I doubt I would be able to give you so much as a rough estimate of how long I was in there. Days and weeks passed in a blur, tome after tome read, each more disappointing than the last. There were infinite references to the duality of Chaos and Order, as well as mentions of the importance of Balance in the natural state of the universe, but nothing told me anything new. There were no volumes that narrated the beginning of the war or explained why every universe seemed to face this same dilemma, no secret use of the power of Balance that could forever end the war.

"I have found nothing," I stated as I stood before the Elder Loremaster, the ancient tree from the Garden of Eden. "You know what will happen if either force wins this war. There will be no new knowledge. If Order wins than all progression will be stifled, and if Chaos wins the people of the universe will be too busy killing each other off to care about learning and developing. Please, old one, help me find a way to end this war."

_There is none,_ the ancient being's thought came into my mind. _Nor should there be. This war must continue. Opposition is needed in all things in order for there to be innovation. If humankind is to progress and continue accumulating knowledge, this opposition must remain. That does not simply mean that neither force can win. It also means that neither can be destroyed, even if the other were to be destroyed as well. If that were to come to pass the absence of opposition would bring our universe into a state of nothingness similar to that of the endless Void._

"So I've been searching through your libraries for who knows long for nothing?!" I exclaimed, flames bursting from my clenched fists. "Thanks a lot for that!"

_So temperamental,_ the Elder commented calmly. _You humans curse Cain, claiming him to be the worst of your kind, yet you seem to be far more like him than you would desire to admit. I was not saying that your search was in vain, young one, simply that you have been looking in the wrong place._

"Than what am I supposed to do then?" I asked him.

_It is not my place to tell you what to do,_ he replied with what I could swear was a chuckle. _I am simply a recorder of knowledge. I can give you information that you require, but I cannot point you toward your path. Only you can determine your own destiny. _

"Great," I muttered to myself. "More cryptic words of advice from a magical creature. I never get enough of **that**." So I left the Grand Libraries of the Loremasters with more questions than answers. According to the Elder Loremaster, this war is unwinnable. I can't somehow eliminate both forces. I can't pull a miraculous victory out of my hat. How then, am I supposed to defeat them? Were they all correct, all those magical beings and people from alternate universes claiming that there was no way I could stand between them?

No, that cannot be true. The Elder told me I could not end this war, but I could sense no fear or despair in him. He would tell me what, but I know that he has knowledge that could help me find my way. That means there is a way, somehow, to save us all. I will find that way. Until then, I think it is time I took the fight to the top. The leaders I have faced so far have either been disposable or those that they knew I could not completely destroy. While I still haven't unearthed the mystery yet, I know I'll sleep a lot easier knowing the big guns are dead. Tomorrow I will earn a new title. Tomorrow I become the Godslayer.


	10. Chapter 9: The Godslayer

Adventures of John: Ravages of War

Chapter 9: The Godslayer

A great battle was about to take place. After all this preparation, the forces of Order and Chaos were finally ready to battle in a manner, one might say, worthy of the gods. A statement that works incredibly well when you realize that the battle was to take between beings who considered themselves gods. Millions of minions stood beneath them, but all knew that the only ones that mattered were the commanders. The greatest warriors and military leaders of the various pantheons led the battle, animal-headed men and women with dark skin standing alongside and against white-skinned men and women in togas and bearskins.

Thor rode into battle on his chariot pulled by two rams, shield in one hand and hammer in the other. Thunder clouds followed him, lightning crackling across the sky. Across the field from him stood Mars, dressed in a flawlessly white toga, a golden gladius in hand. Before Thor a raging horde of Norse berserkers banged their weapons against their shields, while before Mars stood a Roman legion standing silently and sternly with perfect discipline. Minions stretched out in the millions, raging and wild on one side, silent and still on the other.

More gods stood behind their leaders. On the side of Order, Athena watched the enemy warily, while Odin stood proudly, his two ravens flying above him. Behind them were lesser gods I didn't recognize, standing as still and silent as the legions below. Behind Thor stood Sekhmet and Kali, both of them looking incredibly bloodthirsty despite the state I had left them in previously. At some unspoken command the forces of Chaos raged forward, the legions of Order marching to meet them. They clashed together in the center, but the moment they did there was a massive explosion of light and flame, and for a moment as the smoke cleared everything was still.

"Glad I wasn't late to the party," I said, my voice echoing out of the crater I had created, anger showing on the faces of the gathered "gods". I smirked at them, eyes glowing fiercely. "I wouldn't want to miss this." I reached my hand out towards the legionaries and they disintegrated, leaving only the metal from their weapons and armor remaining. With a gesture I sent those pieces of metal flying, hurtling into the mass of unarmored berserkers. "Come on then!" I shouted. "Give me a real challenge!"

Across the rest of the battlefield the remaining minions battled, but any of those that came near me were instantly incinerated. I marched towards Thor, death in my eyes. He smiled cruelly and gestured for Sekhmet to attack. "Do you think this will go any better than the last time?" I asked them. "Because I remember defeating all of you relatively easily the last time."

"You faced us one on one last time," Kali replied. "And you had Mars helping you that final time. I think this time your Roman friend will be a little preoccupied." I turned around and saw that a sandstorm had picked up in the middle of the armies of Order, throwing them across the battlefield. Inside the storm was a massive chocolate-skinned man with the head of a strange creature that I had only seen in pictures. Set, the Egyptian god of Chaos, had arrived. Mars and Odin both turned their attentions to the Egyptian, Athena taking command of the soldiers.

I turned back to see Thor and his goddess friends charging towards me, Thor in the lead with his chariot. Concentrating, I sent a blast of force toward them, shattering the chariot and ripping his rams to bloody pieces. Sekhmet leaped to the forefront, claws extended outwards. I sidestepped her attack easily, reaching through her memory to the pain of my magical spears ripping through her flesh. She roared in pain, falling to the side as Kali came up, blades in hand. A blast of creation energy sent her spinning just as Thor rammed his shield at my face.

The shield met a field of energy, the force from the attack redirected toward its source, shattering the shield and sending the false god flying. "I told you!" I exclaimed as I walked toward him, blasting Kali back down with another burst of creation energy. "You call yourselves gods, but you are nothing! Idiots who sold their souls for a bit of power and false immortality. Well guess what!?" I sent a blast of energy at Thor, sending him flying again. "You lose!"

"Wrong," he replied, standing back up. He began spinning his hammer, thunderclouds gathering again. "You do not understand my power, mortal. Today you die." Lightning struck where I stood, but I was no longer there.

"You'll have to do better than that," I told him. Lightning struck and I teleported again, vanishing and reappearing on the other side of him. He shouted in rage, lightning striking again and again, and each time I was gone before the lightning could hit. One bolt struck, and this time I was there, a blade in hand. The lightning went down the blade and back up, shooting out and blasting the thunder god off his feet.

"You insolent pup!" he exclaimed. "You think to use my own element against me?" He threw his hammer and it flew towards my face, a simple gesture brushing it a few inches to the side. It came back towards the back of my head and I ducked, the weapon flying back towards his hand. I grinned and he ran towards me, shrieking in berserker rage. He struck with his hammer and the force was deflected, sending him stumbling backwards.

"Again with the smashing!" I laughed. "One might think you're the Hulk, the way you stupidly insist on attacking the same useless way. Remember, I developed this technique to work against Superman. Your comic book self wasn't even as strong as him, and to be honest they exaggerate your abilities a bit in the comics."

"You're words mean nothing," he scoffed, confusion evident in his tone.

"Really?" I inquired. "Then let me put it in words you'll understand!" I summoned a blade and leaped at him. He raised his hammer to block, but I wasn't there. For a moment he stood still, then his head slowly slid off, his neck gushing glistening red blood. I stood behind him, his blood staining my blade. His lifeless body fell to the ground and I picked up his head, shouting for all on the battlefield to hear. "The thunder god is dead!"

Murmurs swept through the warring armies as all eyes looked towards me. One word kept on repeating: Godslayer. Odin reached out his hand to call Mjolnir, but I grabbed the hammer myself, and taking it in my hands I broke it in two. The hammer's stone head crumbled to dust and the wooden hilt disintegrated. Lightning surged through my body and I channeled it into the blade I used to kill Thor. I felt a massive amount of power in that sword, the power of all the prayers that had been given to this false god. All of his power, now inside my weapon.

Sekhmet leaped at me and I turned swiftly, slicing her head off as well. Power flowed from her corpse into my blade, filling it with the strength of yet another deity. The forces of Chaos for a moment were completely still, then all together, as if moved by some unseen hand, they fled. Kali and Set vanished, having no desire to face both me and the gods of Order on their own. I simply stood there, basking in the power I could feel pouring from my blade in waves.

"The battle is over," Mars told me, suddenly right next to me. "Order has won the day. Give me the-" his voice cut off as I impaled him, not thinking about the consequences. He looked down at the blade in confusion, golden ichor dripping from the wound. He twitched and for a moment the toga changed into black armor, his eyes becoming red, and then he switched back again. Almost as if he was a faulty computer program, he continued to switch from Ares to Mars, both obviously in pain. "Impossible!" he gasped, falling to the ground. The energy filling him faded, spiraling out from his limp form into my blade.

I had never truly considered it a possibility, but it made sense. The Olympians became immortal because those that worshiped them believed them to be immortal. If anything could kill them, it would be the power provided by worship. Of course something like this would never have worked in the days when they were worshipped by entire civilizations, but now with their power dying out they are weakened. It is funny to think that all this time the Olympians actually had a way to kill each other, and they managed to control themselves enough not to use it in order to keep others from discovering the secret.

Once Ares/Mars ceased to be I was surrounded by lesser gods, Athena and Odin behind them. I knew that even with the power gained from the blade I knew too little about it to defeat all of them, so I sent the blade somewhere I knew it would be safe.

"Where is it?!" Athena exclaimed, her heel pressed against my throat. "Where did you send that blade?!"

"I've sent it off I know not where," I gasped, managing to chuckle at the reference.

"We will discover its location," she warned. "But you have committed crimes against Order, and must be taken for trial. Once your sentence has been decreed, then we will see if we can make you talk. And the answer to that, young _Godslayer_, is a definite yes."

And so I found my way into the cleanest and yet most frightening prison I have seen: the Dungeons of Order.


	11. Chapter 10: Dungeons of Order

Adventures of John: Ravages of War

Chapter 10: Dungeons of Order

Author's Note: Hey everyone. I haven't been getting any reviews lately, and I just wanted to tell you all that even if you don't have any critiques for my writing I would still love to hear from you all. Whether from reviews or PMs, your messages have often helped me through tough times. So if you have anything to tell me, or just want to chat, I would be glad to talk to you.

I laughed as I was thrown into my cell, magic-dampening manacles attached to my wrists and ankles. When I managed to steal the golden apples from Asgard that first time the gods were confused. When I defeated Ares in single combat they were shocked. But now, now that I had killed not one but three gods, now they **_feared_** me. They feared my power, as well as the power that I had stolen and placed inside my blade. I was lucky I hadn't given myself that power, because if I had they would have torn me to pieces to take it from me.

My cell was made of perfectly clean, cold grey stone, with the only illumination being the faint blue light generated from the manacles siphoning off my magic. I tested the manacles with a burst of magic, which was immediately taken into the manacles, their glow increasing momentarily before fading once more. Usually in such situations I managed to escape because my captors underestimated my abilities and I overflowed the manacles with power, but my current captors had made no such mistake. They knew perfectly well what I was capable of, and there was very little chance for an escape.

I chuckled for a bit more, but I soon felt a force enveloping me. I ventured out with my senses and felt the force throughout the prison. It was a greyness, a blandness. It told me to sit still, to wait for trial, to trust that justice would prevail. It told me to do what I was told, to conform, to be like everyone else. It told me that I would be safe, that I would be secure, that everything would be taken care of. All I had to do was obey.

I flared my magic, the manacles glowing bright and hot, burning the skin around my wrists and ankles. The pain brought me back to myself, gasping heavily. I have been tortured for days on end, I have experienced my worst nightmares becoming reality, I have felt my soul being ripped out of me, but nothing was worse than that feeling. That feeling of blankness, of complete uniformity. I would rather be consumed by the Void and become nothing than submit to that bland grey.

It was then, as I sat there in the Dungeons of Order, that I realized the true horror of Order. If Order were to win this war, there wouldn't simply a tyrannical world-wide government. This feeling, this force, would encompass all the universe. Everything would be bland and grey and the same. Everything would be under the rule of Order, and no one would even care. I decided then and there that I had to break out of this prison, lest I fall under the sway of that force.

Unfortunately, that turned out to be easier said than done. The manacles absorbed my magic just as well as they had before, and after testing the walls of my cell I determined that they were indeed stone, and there was no way I was going to break them down without magic helping me. Not only that, but the manacles also kept me from using my creation abilities. I tried to think of a way to utilize the power of Balance to get myself out, but Balance isn't exactly the most violent of forces. I can use it to bring an end to destruction, but I can't use it to destroy. Sitting there in that cell, I was powerless. I sat there for hours, fighting off the grey blandness and trying to find a way out, but the truth was that even while in the mortal realm I have more power than I did at that moment. At least in the mortal world I wasn't stuck inside a cell.

"That's it!" I exclaimed. Like usual, I had traveled to the magical realms via spirit travel. My body was still on earth, safe in bed. If I could just find a way back… The manacles were siphoning off my magic. That was the key. Even without using my magic, they were still slowly taking my magic from me. Except the thing was, my spirit form was entirely made out of magic. All I had to do was draw my magic back into my body, feeding what was left into the manacles, allowing my consciousness to escape.

I began the process, my power slowly finding its way back to my unconscious body. As I did so I saw my hand becoming translucent, losing the power that kept my spirit form together. The manacles continued to drain my magic, but with my power gone, they had nothing left to feed off of but me. The doors of my prison opened just as the manacles fell to the ground, the servants of Order staring in shock at the place I had once stood.

My consciousness fled, soaring out of the confines of its prison. As it did however, I saw something both wonderful and terrible. I saw that grey, bland, uniform force pushing against another force, one filled with backs and whites and colors of all shades and hues. It was filled with rage and joy and sorrow and hate and love and life and death and pain and everything, emotions and sensations forced together into a chaotic flood that would drown you and drive insane. I watched the two forces battling, seeming to almost be sentient.

No, not sentient. There was no intelligence in this conflict. There was, however, purpose. These forces were alive, and they only wanted one thing: to destroy the other completely. It was a sight unlike any other, watching them battle. I knew that soon I would have to find a way to stop them, or else their battle would consume the universe.

. . . . .

I woke up in my bed this morning, something digging into my leg. Reaching into my pocket, I found a box. A small, archaic-looking box that filled me with a sense of foreboding. "You shouldn't be here," I muttered. I knew this box well. I had always considered it my weapon of last resort. I had created this box, but the magics I had used to create it were unpredictable and dangerous. And in that moment, I realized that it is exactly what I need.


	12. Chapter 11: The Final Battle

Adventures of John: Ravages of War

Chapter 11: The Final Battle

During my time in the prison a dozen more battles had raged across the magical realms between the forces of Order and Chaos. Looking up the news online showed me that things were also heating up in Syria, Iraq, and the Ukraine, and it didn't look like they were getting better. This war was escalating, and soon it would reach the tipping point. In the following days I devised my plan, a desperate plan that had only the slimmest of chances at succeeding, but it was all we had. And judging by the state of things in the realms both mortal and magical, if this didn't work, there wouldn't be a second chance.

The opposing forces had been testing each other, pushing and pulling to see who was stronger. As of yet, no more gods had died in the struggle, but only because they fled whenever defeat was eminent. Horus battled Loki, Odin battled Set, Zeus battled Kali, and the war was kept at a standstill for the time being, which was just what I needed. However, I knew the time was approaching as I felt those forces gaining strength. The wild, violent emotion of Chaos against the bland, uniform greyness of Order, both of them becoming stronger and spreading, filling the minds of both monsters and men, the tiny beings multiplying, whispering fervently in everyone's ears. So this morning I put the plan into action.

I chose my location carefully, a massive valley filled with light and darkness, a place where Balance held sway. Concentrating, I conjured what I had begun to think of as my Godslayer Blade, a beautiful weapon with a silvery blade and a golden jewel in the center of the cross guard. I then sent a burst of power into the air, declaring for everyone in the magical realms that I was there, and that I was ready to fight.

Before long I felt a dark presence and watched as a faceless man in a top hat and waistcoat slither out of the shadows. "If you wanted to die sssso much you could have ssssimply assssked me to do it," the Shadow Trickster hissed. "Now everyone isss coming. You've grown too big, Johnny Boy. They all want you dead." His arm morphed into a scythe which swept down towards my skull, only to be blocked by a spear of light.

"Foul creature!" the Queen of Spring, my former benefactor, declared haughtily. She sent out another blast of light, forcing the Trickster to retreat into the shadows. She turned to me, kindness in her eyes. "It is not too late," she told me. "Join the side of Order. You can take Mars's place. You have his power now."

"I cannot do that," I replied. "I stand with Balance. I will not let this world fall to either force. This ends today."

"It can never end!" Zeus declared, appearing in a blast of lightning. "Not until Chaos is destroyed!" Set appeared then, and Odin, and Loki, and Horus, and every other god. Magical creatures of every shape and sort appeared around me, from the most benevolent to the vilest of them all. As they came I could feel the two forces coming as well, unbalancing the valley as they clashed. After killing three gods, I was public enemy number one, and everyone had shown up for what they assumed was my execution. But they were wrong.

"Woohoo!" came a cry that shocked everyone as a massive ship suddenly appeared in the sky, entering our universe from the Void. Cannon fire burst into the sky, killing swarms of flying demons and faeries. "We've got your back, Captain!" The man I affectionately know as Pirate Jack waved at me from the helm, Wiznet and Alara both taking a moment to do the same. "Let's show these bloody idiots who they're dealing with!" Pirate Jack shouted, steering the _Great _Adventure, my Void ship, back into the fray.

Zeus reached for his lightning bolt, only to find it was gone. In fact, many of the assembled gods suddenly found themselves missing their primary weapon. "Now this is interesting," a leathery-faced Native American man stated as he sat atop a boulder, inspecting Odin's spear, a hundred other weapons at his feet. "You would think that out of a hundred different gods, at least one of them would take better care of their belongings." Coyote gave them a savage grin, flipping the spear in the air. "You should really learn to never trust a Trickster." The grin vanished then as Loki slammed his hand into Coyote's chest, ripping out the fellow Trickster's heart.

"You should have never left the side of Chaos," Loki snarled at him, eyes blazing.

"Doesn't really matter," Coyote laughed, choking on his own blood. He turned to me, his smile pained. "See you tomorrow kid."

Loki reached down to grab Odin's spear, but it was suddenly gone, along with all the other weapons. Loki spun around to see that they were all at my feet, Hermes standing beside me in a basketball outfit, wearing a cocky grin. "How are you holding up?" I asked him.

"Not too bad," he replied. "Mercury definetly isn't happy about this, but I think I've got him under control."

"Good. Go help Pirate Jack out. Take some of the stress off of him." Hermes flashed away to help out Jack, just as I turned to see another Jack appear. "Long time no see," I told the Guardian.

"I've been busy!" he replied, holding his hands up. "I'm here now, aren't I?"

"Yes you are," I answered with a grin, giving him a firm man-hug. "Now come on. A few of us against unbeatable odds. Just like old times."

"With a ninety-nine percent chance of complete and total failure," he added. "Just like old times." He flew off with a grin, soaring into the midst of a swarm of Nightmares.

"Do you really think this is enough?" Zeus laughed. "These allies of yours are pitiful. Soon you will see what a true god can do." He reached out his hand to summon his lightning bolt, but with a wave of my hand I sent it back to my feet.

"You're going to have to do better than that," I told him. "If you really want your precious lightning bolt, if **any** of you want your weapons, you are going to have to kill me first."

"You go too far!" Zeus declared.

"Now I've gone too far?" I asked with a laugh. "It wasn't too far when I killed your son, but now that I've taken your lightning bolt it is too far? Well aren't you father of the year."

"I hereby remove your diplomatic immunity from the affairs of the gods," he told me sternly.

"I think that's a moot point by now," I replied with a chuckle. "What with me killing three of you and all. Besides, I sort of got that diplomatic immunity on false pretenses anyway." I told you all before that I stole the golden apples from Asgard because Hermes recruited me to, but that was a lie. You don't lie to a bunch of gods and then tell everyone else about it. That's just not smart. "I didn't steal those apples from Asgard as a task from Hermes," I told him. "I did it because I was bored. I had nothing else to do, and I thought it would be fun. Hermes found me afterwards and told me about how Thor had previously insulted you, then we came up with that lie together. He's a really cool guy you know. You should give him a raise."

"I will destroy that traitor myself," he spat, "but first I will destroy you!" He began to charge at me, only to be knocked off his feet as the ground began to shake violently.

"This isn't part of the plan," I muttered. "Is Poseidon doing this?" Just then a massive purplish **thing** rose out of the ground, covered in boils. A massive field of purple followed it, and I flew up in the air to get a better idea of what it was. It was a hand, an incredibly ugly hand the size of a small island. The ground burst open again, scattering gods aside as something far larger broke the surface: a head. "First!" I laughed. "I wasn't expecting to see you here!"

"Don't lie to me little one," he rumbled. "I know full well that you knew I would come. Now, let's see how many of these so called gods are squashable!"

A portal appeared then, an old man in a green suit and top hat popping out, dragging a green-skinned woman in a black dress behind him. "I heard you needed help!" the Mad Hatter told me. "Good to see you again John!"

"You always have to drag me into your stupid conflicts, don't you?" Elphaba sighed grumpily.

"Would you rather see the universe destroyed?" I asked her.

"Of course not!" she snapped. "Otherwise I wouldn't be here!" She flew off then, blasting the surrounding creatures with green energy.

They weren't the greatest heroes from across the multiverse, that was sure. But they had come when I needed them. They were outcasts and criminals and lunatics and dangerous immortals and ancient evils, but at that moment they were on my side, and many of them were good friends. They, unlike the rest of the world, stood with me against forces most believed to be unstoppable. Besides, I didn't need the greatest heroes of creation for this. I just needed a large enough conflict.

The battle had drawn the focus of the two forces, their near-sentience sensing the conflict. They clashed all around us, the faces of some combatants twisting into wild snarls, the faces of others becoming completely blank. With the focus no longer on me, I sat down and began to meditate. I drew upon the powers of Balance, seeking to alleviate the unbalance caused by the warring forces, and they immediately focused on me. I was instantly assaulted by a million different emotions, and at the same time I was drowned in a feeling of blank emotionlessness.

I smiled, pulling a small wooden box out of my pocket. I opened the box and spoke a single word, a word of power that rang throughout the valley, turning the heads of everyone present. The two forces were suddenly sucked down into the box as if by a planet-sized vacuum cleaner, looks of shock on everyone's faces as the corrupting influences were suddenly stripped from them. The lid slammed shut, the two forces locked inside, still engaged in battle. Order and Chaos were still at war, but inside the confines of this prison they could barely affect anyone, much less the entire world. In essence, I saved the world with a box.

The gathered creatures looked about in confusion, leaving one by one. The gods simply stared at me, more shocked than ever. I had just done the impossible. I had defeated two forces that not even the gods had dared stand against. Many of them left then, the few remnants fleeing when I took out my Godslayer Blade. I pocketed the box, looking at the devastation around me.

"You really did it!" Jack laughed, landing next to me. "We need to celebrate. We could have a party over at the Pole."

"Sounds fun," Hermes cut in, now dressed like your average mailman, a package under his arm. "Unfortunately, I've got work to do."

"Zeus said he was going to kill you," I informed him.  
I don't think Olympus is the best place for you right now."

"He needs me too much to kill me," Hermes replied. "Olympus wouldn't keep running if it wasn't for me. He'll probably just make my job harder, and I'm used to hard work." He flew off then, zipping away into the sky.

"So what now?" Jack asked, the rest of the group crowding around. "What's next?"

"Next?" I laughed. "Next we rest. After that… I guess we just keep on living. Until the next disaster at least. But until then, we go and we live our lives."

Author's Note: I think this is it my friends. The last universe-threatening disaster. I may be wrong of course. I might be very wrong. But with the conflict between Order and Chaos contained, the world should slowly go back to normal, whatever normal is. I will make sure to keep the box safe, and we should all be safe, as long as some idiot doesn't open the darn thing. Hopefully I'll be able to keep that from happening. Personally, I'm looking forward to being able to spend time with my family again. I've spent too long at this war. For now at least, it's my wife and kids that need me, not the universe. I will keep making more stories as story-worthy things happen, but hopefully they will be less apocalyptic. And if story-worthy stuff doesn't happen, I can always go back to writing fiction. I've almost forgotten what that's like… Well, see you some other time, faithful readers. Thank you for your support and good night.


	13. Epilogue: Afterword

Adventures of John: Ravages of War

Epilogue: Afterword

While things in the magical realms seem to have calmed down, it may take a while before the same happens in the mortal realm. We humans are an incredibly stubborn species and don't change our minds easily, so even with the influence of Order and Chaos on our minds at a minimum, it will probably take some time for things to get less volatile. And even without those forces messing with our heads, humans are still a pretty violent species. We will still get into wars and do bad stuff. The main difference is that it will be our fault, and not the fault of ancient and unstoppable forces.

Coyote came and congratulated me on my victory yesterday at dawn. He then gave me a grin and a pat on the back before changing into his animal shape and loping away into the desert. Pirate Jack and the crew went back to searching for the reason why Captain Scrawl was sent back in time, while Elphaba went back to her self-imposed exile, the Mad Hatter went back to traveling, the First went back to whatever realm he comes from and Jack went to the Pole to watch a wrestling match between one of the yetis and a polar bear.

I am currently on the road, my family going on a road trip up the West Coast of the United States. Elsa was glad to know that the madness was over, and in our spare time I've decided to introduce her and the rest of our family over in Arendelle to nerd culture. I've started with Harry Potter, which everyone seems to be enjoying so far, even though they still don't entirely understand the concept of television.

I will continue to write stories, even if nothing else interesting happens. A lot of you have told me that you wanted to know more about what happened in the three and a half weeks I spent recovering in Arendelle on my first trip there and how Elsa and I got to know each other. I skipped over that time when I wrote The Adventurer and the Snow Queen because I felt like I needed to finish the story as quickly as possible, but I am thinking about writing down what I remember of those few weeks, now that I have the time to. After that, well, who knows what might happen.


	14. The Story is Not Over

The Story is Not Over…

…Not even close. If you enjoyed this story, why stop now? This is only one story in the _John the Adventurer_ series. Read all about my other adventures! Here are all of the stories in chronological order with the link to each of them. Enjoy!

**PART 1**

The Early Adventures

1. Journey to Neverland

s/9988513/1/Adventures-of-John-Journey-to-Neverland

2. Welcome to Wonderland

s/9992207/1/Adventures-of-John-Welcome-to-Wonderland

3. The Wonderful Conspiracy of Oz

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4. The Day I Met the Doctor

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The Frozen Trilogy

5. The Adventurer and the Snow Queen

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- The Lost Weeks

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6. The Search for Arendelle

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7. The Return to Arendelle

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Conclusion

8. World War Magic

s/10051986/1/Adventures-of-John-World-War-Magic

**PART 2**

Valentines Day

9. My Frozen Valentine

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Danger of the Rifts

10. Parallels

s/10121264/1/Adventures-of-John-Parallels

11. The Doctor, the Daleks, and the Dragon

s/10126576/1/Adventures-of-John-The-Doctor-the-Daleks-and-the-Dragon

12. Winchesters

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13. Heroes

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The Void Trilogy

14. The Society

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15. Into the Void

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16. Heart of the Void

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Aftermath

17. A Frozen Child One Shot

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**PART 3**

A New Threat

18. Inner Demons

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19. The Masters of Chaos One Shot

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20. New World Order

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21. The Stolen Queen

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22. Twist in Time

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The War

23. And So Begins the War

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24. Gods of War

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25. Ravages of War

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